The “Hail Mary Pass” actually originated in 1922, when two former members of Notre Dame's Four Horsemen, Elmer Layden (Catholic) and Jim Crowley (I don't care) coined the term.įor more than 50 years, the term was largely confined to Notre Dame University (God bless them!) and other US Catholic universities.
Making time for God is just as essential, and your soul will be better for it.Considering one is risking one's life 40-feet in the air to a guy with sweaty palms, I think it's probably best to ask for Divine intercession. Reinhard: You make time to shower each day, right? Or to have lunch with a dear friend or family member? Or to listen to a loved one when they need an ear? What’s your chief pitch for making the time? Lopez: Even if you pray it quickly, the Rosary does take time. Read more: John Paul II and the Protective Power of the Family Rosary I haven’t prayed a daily Rosary in way too long… I feel closer to Jesus after spending time contemplating His life, however imperfectly I do it. It’s never a lightning bolt experience, but the long-tail effect is one of peace and trust in God and His will for my life. Whenever I make the time to pray the Rosary, I always find myself blessed. Reinhard: Inasmuch as its prayer that draws us closer to God, absolutely! None of us have to pray the Rosary, and nowhere are we told, as Catholics, that we are required to pray it. Lopez: Is the Rosary essential to the life of a Catholic? The response I give stems from the conversation I’m having with the person and it always seems to be in the context of a conversation. When I have trouble approaching Jesus, I think of Mary as a girlfriend in heaven.” I’ve heard it from Catholics and non-Catholics, and for me, the response is to say something to the effect of, “Well, she’s Jesus’ mom and he loved her. Most of the people who know me well and ask it seem to phrase it as, “I don’t get the whole Mary thing” or, “What’s with Mary?” They see that it’s just a normal part of my life and I think they’re curious, more than anything. Reinhard: I have been asked that a time or two, though not like that. Lopez: Do you get asked “why do Catholics worship Mary” questions? How do you tend to respond?
It’s a way to turn to God through His mother, and I find great comfort in that. Reinhard: For one thing, it’s Scripture! For another thing, it’s short and easy.įor me, the Hail Mary is a “blankie prayer,” the one I turn to when I don’t have words for the desires and worries and weights on my heart. Lopez: What’s so special about the Hail Mary? Maybe instead of seeing slowing down as a destination, we need to see it as a moveable sort of metric, something that’s relative.
I guess what I’m saying is that it’s only as impossible as you make it. If it’s 2 minutes before you get out of bed in the morning, go with that. If it’s 15 seconds in the bathroom, where you go to a quiet mental state, then do that. Reinhard: You’re describing my life right now!
Lopez: What if it’s impossible to slow down, period? So much of our lives are instant: communication, information, travel… slowing down is a way to remind ourselves that we are human beings, not human doings. Though she’s not Catholic, I wonder if she’s slower in her prayers.Įven so, I think the concept of slowing down is one that we don’t fully appreciate. That said, I think of people like my 87-year-old grandmother, whose pace of life is so much different than mine (because her season of life is different), and I wonder.